The Dreary Days, The Empty Nights
by hansbmd
Summary: "We stay here, we'll lose, and I guess, I think it's time we started winning." Dirk Valentine suggests to Frances Humber that they run away and never look back. She accepts, knowing that if they don't, they'll be stuck in this cycle of fear and emptiness forever. And she knows she can't handle that much longer. Songfic based on Celtic Thunder's "Steal Away."
**Hello everyone! So this is just a cute little songfic based on an original Celtic Thunder song called "Steal Away," which is about a couple considering eloping. When I listened to it, I couldn't help but think of our favorite star-crossed lovers from The Secret of Shadow Ranch. I wanted to have this ready in time for Valentine's Day, but as always, life intervened. So this is a month late, but I hope it's still all right. This one isn't as reflective as some of my other stories, it has more dialogue than I usually write. The beginning and end have some introspective moments but for the most part, it's pretty centered on the love between Frances Humber and Dirk Valentine. Happy reading!**

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"Whoa," Frances cooed softly to her horse, Brownie, pulling him gently to a halt behind some boulders near her meeting place with Dirk. He'd said to meet him at the three-armed cactus, but that was one of their riskier meeting places (well technically speaking, they were all risky, but both had learned how to be sneaky when meeting each other). The trail was fairly well used, granted not at that time of day, but it would still mean trouble if someone saw her horse nearby and went looking for her. She swiftly dismounted, pulled off her riding gloves and stowed them in her saddlebag before dropping the reins to the ground in front of the horse. She smiled; Brownie was extremely well trained. It didn't matter what sort of incident occurred, he'd stand there and wait for her until she got back.

Her eyes darted over the immediate area but didn't see anyone coming. She waited a few more minutes just to be sure her father hadn't sent anyone after her, then began walking the rest of the way up the trail. Dirk's last letter had mentioned that her father had people all over the county looking for him. She believed it. Meryl Humber was as determined as anyone else to see Dirk Valentine caught, though his reasons were more about protecting his daughter than about recovering any of the money Dirk had stolen. Frances rolled her eyes; she didn't need her father to protect her. She did just fine on her own! Besides, Dirk never hurt anyone when he robbed the stage, never fired his gun and only stole from people who could afford it anyway. She and her father had had many long arguments about that, however.

Frances reached the cactus and sat down behind it, out of immediate view of the trail. She never had to wait very long. Dirk was always prompt, but then again he had to be. Their secret meetings never lasted very long, half an hour at the most. Any more than that and people would start to wonder at Frances being gone. She often used the excuse that she was visiting her cousin, Ellie, but she knew her father was beginning to see through the lie. She hoped he'd believed it today; she didn't have any other excuse for the basket she'd brought along with her. She sighed. She was going to have to tell Dirk that they would have to meet less often, which broke her heart considering they now only met once or twice a month at the most. He wouldn't like it, the more time spent apart from each other cut them to the bone, but he'd see the reasoning behind it. The more she acted like things were normal, the better. Then perhaps her father would put a little more trust in her and then when she did arrange to meet Dirk, she'd have a better chance of carrying it out safely. It might take a little convincing, but she'd get him to see sense. She always did.

A soft whistle sounded from nearby and a wide smile spread across her face. To anyone else, it would've sounded like a bird, but she recognized it for what it was. She quickly got to her feet, took one last look around, and began to follow the sound of the whistle. She walked several yards away from the trail, still in view of the cactus and waited for the whistle to come again. There it was, somewhere to her right. She turned her head and saw a person quickly disappear behind another pile of rocks. She smiled and shook her head, before turning the bend to follow the person.

There he was. Her beloved Dirk, sitting on a blanket stretched over the sand, an impish smile on his face and eyes full of love, a look that was only ever directed at her. He patted the spot next to him and she sat down, leaning over to kiss him by way of hello.

"How's the most beautiful girl in Arizona?" asked Dirk, making a blush appear on his lady's cheeks.

"Happy to see you're safe and sound," she answered. The unspoken "for the moment" was still heard by both of them. "And you?"

"Better now that I've seen you," he answered. "I brought you something."

He pushed a small sack towards her and she smiled when she saw it was the four tins of "Sunflower Crackers" that he'd mentioned in his last letter.

"I have a surprise for you also," she said pushing her basket towards him. He looked surprised, but didn't refuse the gift. He carefully took the basket from her and pulled back the cloth on top to reveal a cake topped with vanilla icing and a large decorative tulip.

"Don't tell me," he said with a grin. "The famous Shadow Ranch cake?"

"My favorite," she nodded, cutting off a slice and handing him a fork. "Well, don't just sit there, dig in."

Dirk hadn't thought it was possible to fall more in love with Frances Humber than he already was, but one bite of that cake proved him wrong. His eyes widened in astonishment before fluttering shut in bliss and a soft moan of appreciation escaped his lips.

"That is without a doubt the best thing I've ever tasted," he said softly. "And it's even better coming from you."

"I knew you'd love it," she replied with a smile.

"How did you get it out here?" he asked. "Wouldn't your father or someone else have noticed if you left Shadow Ranch with a large basket full of cake?"

"I told him it was for a friend," Frances replied easily. "And it isn't a complete lie. Ellie has a friend whose birthday is today and I did bake a cake for them, but did it yesterday when I had the ranch all to myself."

"Little fox," Dirk shook his head.

"It's worth the risk, just this once," she defended. "I thought you deserved a treat."

"I never say no," he replied, before kissing a little bit of icing off her lips, making her giggle. "What's wrong?"

The abrupt change of subject threw her for a loop, and she quickly covered with, "nothing's wrong."

"There is if you're bringing me cake and saying I deserve a treat," Dirk nodded. "You don't approve of the way I live my life, and I don't either since I met you. You're too straight forward about just about everything, so if you're bringing me something like this, it means you're trying to soften the blow."

Frances sighed and turned her head away; Dirk knew her far too well. "Frances, look at me," he demanded softly. She did. "What's wrong?"

She sighed again. She really didn't want to broach the subject, but she also didn't really have a choice. "Dirk, I think we should…we need to…" She risked a glance at his face and could tell he already had ventured a guess as to what she was going to say. He raised his eyebrows in a silent gesture for her to continue, even though his countenance was filled with sad resignation.

She took a deep breath, "I think we should limit our meetings a bit more."

He sighed, "I had a feeling you'd say that."

"Surely you understand why," she continued. "This is already too dangerous as it is, our letters, our meeting like this. If my father were to find out we were doing this…"

She didn't have to finish that statement; both knew perfectly well what would happen.

"The same thought occurred to me," replied Dirk after a minute. "Which is why I've thought up a plan."

"Which is?"

"Let's steal away."

Frances blinked, then blinked again. "I beg your pardon?" she asked, feigning disinterest but in reality terrified of what that small sentence implied.

"Let's steal away and chase our dreams," Dirk elaborated. "Let's get out of here, run away together, leave Arizona and find someplace where we can settle down and live quietly together. And, of course, hope your father never finds us."

Frances visibly relaxed upon hearing that. Running away with him, that she could do. She was willing to travel to the furthest reaches of the earth for him if it meant he was safe and they could be happy.

"How are we supposed to do this?" she asked.

"I need some more time," he answered. "I need to get the means to support you until I can get an honest position. Then once we have the means, we'll get out of here and make our own lives. I'll find a respectable trade, maybe start my own ranch and leave my outlaw days behind me for good."

The thought of living with him on their own ranch warmed her heart, but the means of achieving that end filled her with a sense of foreboding.

"And what if…" she began, but Dirk cut her off.

"Don't go there," he warned her. "We talked about this. If either of us start thinking this is hopeless and things will go wrong, then something definitely will go wrong. Things will work out, right?" She couldn't help but nod. The situation always sounded better when he said it with that bright voice and cheeky little grin. He continued, "but Frances, if there's any chance of us being together, we have to leave. There's no future here for us, no win, only worry and eventual heartache. We stay here, we'll lose, and I guess, I think it's time we started winning."

She didn't very much like the win/lose metaphor as though this were all a game, but on the other hand, Dirk loved games. He robbed people because he felt he needed to, but she felt it was because he loved the challenge. She wasn't sure if he could settle in to being a rancher, but if she managed to convince him it'd be a new challenge, he'd do it for her sake.

"You're right," she said at last. "We do need to leave. How much longer do you think you'll be?"

"I wish I knew. I just need enough to pay off some of my buddies and then make sure I can support you. Until then…"

"It might be weeks."

"Yeah," he nodded sadly. "I'll take as little time as I can."

"I know that," she acknowledged with a nod. "But I have conditions."

"Tell me."

"You only take what you absolutely need," she insisted. He started to open his mouth but she wouldn't let him speak. "This isn't negotiable, Dirk. Only take what you absolutely need and not a penny more. If you start taking more chances and going for value that you only want or think will impress me, then our arrangement is off."

"I could just tell you it was all for the cause," he replied weakly, but it was a feeble argument and they both knew it.

"If there's one thing I detest more than stealing, it's lying. You know I can always tell when you're lying."

He nodded. "I know."

"So don't take any chances. As soon as you're sure we have enough to leave, then we leave. We don't waste time. If you know we have enough, but decide to get more, just that one last stage, that'll be the time my father catches you. Sooner or later, your luck is going to run out and I want us to be gone before it does, so don't try and outdo yourself for the fun of it, or think that you have to get more for my sake. I don't need extravagance, I just need you."

"Okay," he agreed. "But that doesn't give us a lot of time for my treasure hunt."

"What treasure hunt?" she asked.

"The gold I've already set aside for us. I've hidden it someplace safe and I'm setting up a little scavenger hunt for you to find it."

She rolled her eyes. "Dirk…"

"I'll explain later," he added quickly. "We've already been here longer than we should've been, otherwise I'd fill you in now. But did you have any other conditions?"

"Just one. That you'll use all the money you take to become an honest man."

"Frances…"

"I mean it, Dirk. Once we've left Arizona, the stealing is done. No more criminal activity of any kind, even if we're left completely destitute and it's the only way to recuperate. I can't go back to this life."

"This life?"

"Constantly worrying about you, wondering if this will be the time that the authorities catch you. I can't do this again."

The anguished look in those soft eyes almost had him breaking into tears. He wrapped his arms around her, brought her closer so her head was leaning against his shoulder and kissed her on the forehead. "You won't have to, I promise."

She sighed in contentment and they stayed like that for a few minutes before pulling back.

"It's getting late," Dirk sighed. "We've been here too long."

She nodded. The sun was beginning to go down and she knew if she didn't get home soon that her father would send a search party out for her. Dirk peeked out from behind the rocks and made sure no one was coming before leading Frances over to his horse. He helped her into the saddle before swinging himself up and trotting down the trail to where she'd left Brownie. This was one risk he was always willing to take, appearing out in the open to get Frances safely to her horse. They found the bay standing exactly where Frances had left him and she gracefully dropped to the ground before pulling herself into the saddle of her own horse. She reached over again to give Dirk another kiss.

"Until next time?" she asked. They'd agreed a long time ago that they weren't going to say "goodbye," – too many negative connotations.

"Until next time," he nodded. "I love you."

"I love you," she whispered back and with another cheeky grin and wink at her, he turned his horse and galloped east. She watched him go for a minute, then turned Brownie in the opposite direction and kicked him into a canter.

As she rode into the setting sun, she wondered how long it would be before she and Dirk rode into that light together, the sun dying on the previous chapter of their lives and ready to rise in the morning to open the new one. Because she desperately needed to close this chapter. She hadn't been lying when she said she couldn't ever repeat this situation, nor could she handle it for much longer as it was. Every morning, she woke up wondering if today would be the day their luck ran out. Every day she rode to Cappy's, wondering if he had news on Dirk and what her father was doing to find him (because her father never told her what he was doing). Every night, she went to bed with thanksgiving that Dirk was safe and a prayer for his continued safety, and she would dream beautiful dreams of their future together. She needed that future. It was her only lifeline on what currently seemed to be bleak prospects. Her days were dark, even if sunshine filled the sky, and nightmares sometimes plagued her dreams, and the nights where they didn't still felt cold. The sooner she put those behind her, the better.

She couldn't help but devote a few minutes to thinking of the treasure hunt he'd mentioned. She couldn't deny she was intrigued; she loved a good brainteaser and Dirk loved providing them for her. Still, she really didn't think this was exactly the time for puzzles; they needed to get what they needed and get out before her father arrested the love of her life. If she was able to find his treasure in the time left before they eloped, then that was all well and good, but she'd really prefer if it could wait until after they'd gone.

She got back to the ranch, unsaddled and brushed Brownie off, and walked quickly inside the house, relieved to see her father wasn't home yet. She knew he'd probably eat dinner at Cappy's that night but set about preparing a small meal for him when he returned just in case, as well as something for herself. She couldn't get by on cake for the rest of the evening. She turned to put the basket away and realized there was still about a quarter of the cake left, most of it consisting of the decorative tulip she'd put on it. She'd been searching for a decoration to put on her Shadow Ranch cake for months; she'd only decided on the tulip after she met Dirk. The tulip, particularly a red one, meant a declaration of love in the language of flowers. Even though Dirk likely hadn't known the significance of the flower, he'd still probably recognized the gesture for what it was, more than just a something sweet. That she risked meeting him, even smuggling something out of the ranch to him was a testament of her feelings. She couldn't do much to show she loved him, so she spoke whenever she could in a language she always understood. Almost all of her favorite flowers represented love in some way or other, such as the tulip and the daisy, while the rest represented happiness and pleasure such as the poppy. She used them to show just how happy she was, and once she had left with Dirk, she would gain even more favorites and grow her own garden full of them, filling their house with the happiness and love shared between them.

"Yes, it's time we started winning," she nodded. "It's time to start anew."

She put the cake away and set about her evening chores, so that when Meryl Humber arrived a short time later, she was able to greet him affectionately and pretend like she hadn't been anywhere that day. When she went to bed, she replayed Dirk's offer in her mind.

"Let's steal away and chase our dreams," he'd told her. She nodded and allowed herself to fill her mind with visions of their riding into the sunset. The sense of foreboding she'd felt earlier hadn't dissipated and it wouldn't until they had left, but for now, she tried her hardest to quash it and focus on what she wanted most.

Six short weeks later, she would see that foreboding turned from a feeling into reality as her beloved was led to the gallows. Whenever the word "steal" was mentioned in conversation from that point onward, she thought not of thievery, but of the opportunity she and Dirk had missed.

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 **So what did you think? When I heard this song, I thought eloping might be the best possibility that Frances and Dirk had for being happy, even though such a thing in the 1880's, even in America, would have been socially unacceptable and destroyed her reputation in that part of Arizona. That they were planning to leave Arizona is no big deal, but just that Frances is willing to take that step for Dirk shows just how much she loves him. The title might seem depressing, but I wanted it to be a contrast to the light in the story; the hope that Dirk brings to Frances and how at the very end it's dashed from them. The text brings light, the title reminds us of the darkness. The song itself is beautiful and only bespeaks new beginnings, hope and happiness. It doesn't remind us of downsides and I felt I needed to do that here, hence the depressing title and even more depressing ending. I might write a follow up to this that isn't a songfic (*gasp* me writing a oneshot that isn't a songfic - might just happen!) that centers solely on Frances, but we'll see. I have an idea but I'm not sure yet if anything will come from it. We'll see though.**

 **Bonus points if anyone can spot the Les Miserables reference in this story! It's not very well concealed, should be pretty easy. As always, please read, review and favorite!**


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